EU slashes mobile data roaming costs by 36 percent today

Starting to date, mobile phone roaming costs are slashed again in the European Union as the European Commission has lowered the maximum price for mobile roaming. Text message costs are down 11 percent, while call charges dropped 17 percent, but the biggest price fall is for mobile data roaming. The max cap for mobile Internet dropped 36 percent, down to 45 eurocents per megabyte (excl. VAT), 91 percent cheaper than in 2007! Further price drops are in store for 2014, one year from now the maximum price for mobile data roaming will fall to 20 eurocents per megabyte (excl. VAT), while other roaming tariffs will also see nice declines.

From 1 July 2013, the European Union's Roaming Regulation will lower the price caps for data downloads by 36%, making it much cheaper to use maps, watch videos, check emails and update social networks while travelling across the EU. Data roaming will now be up to 91% cheaper in 2013 compared to 2007. During this period the volume of the data roaming market has grown 630%. These two trends mean both consumers and mobile operators have significant new opportunities thanks to EU efforts.

The EU has achieved retail price reductions across calls, SMS and data of over 80% since 2007.

Each year, Europeans make several million visits to Croatia, which joins the EU on 1 July. This year visitors to Croatia will enjoy spectacular savings as the cost for data decreases almost 15 times and sending a SMS or making a phone call elsewhere in the EU will be 10 times cheaper.

Commission Vice President Neelie Kroes said: "The EU has to be relevant to people's lives. The latest price cuts put more money in your pocket for summer, and are a critical step towards getting rid of these premiums once and for all. This is good for both consumers and companies, because it takes fear out of the market, and it grows the market.

Operators are free to offer cheaper rates, and some have already begun to remove roaming premiums altogether for voice and SMS, or offer a roaming-free area region across one section of Europe or another.